Was the BLT dub any good?

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MasenkoHA
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Was the BLT dub any good?

Post by MasenkoHA » Mon Apr 09, 2018 6:20 pm

The whole 13 episodes is available on Amazon for super cheap and I was thinking of getting it. I actually remember the theme song "GOKU! HE'S GONNA SHOW YOU!" from when I was a kid and literally nothing else about it. I wanna say a friend or cousin had some of the vhs or something when I was growing up.

I know it was censored but I think I can live without a talking pig trying to molest a 16-year old girl and a old man asking to see the same girl's panties.

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Re: Was the BLT dub any good?

Post by Super Sonic » Mon Apr 09, 2018 7:19 pm

It has its moments. Like many older anime dubs it may not have aged as well by today's standards but it's ok. And interestingly enough, censorship wise, it got away with some stuff that the first two seasons of DBZ didn't. They don't shy away from death, so no "Next dimension" and Pilaf and co. shoot Giant Monkey Goku with actual guns. No laser blasters which some later 90s/early 2000s anime dubs tended to put into things. Though funny enough, Chi-Chi can decapitate a t-rex and its blood can be spewing out, but Yamcha can't konk her on the head cutting to Puar looking shocked, a slap sound effect and her screaming. And speaking of little Chi-Chi, if you have brony friends, they'll be happy as she as well as Penny from "Curse of the Blood Rubies" is voiced by Andrea Libman who was 11 at the time of its airing. Will also say Lalainia Lindbjerg made Bulma her own and sounds good as her.

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Re: Was the BLT dub any good?

Post by Robo4900 » Mon Apr 09, 2018 7:21 pm

The acting is great, the replacement score is good, and the scripts were actually often more accurate than Funi's dub.

There are cuts, but they're generally handled pretty well when they are present, and it's fairly understandable why they would do it. Ultimately, it's a 1995 TV dub, so cuts are to be expected, but within the expectations of a TV dub, it's pretty much as good as it could be, I think.

So yes, I'd say the BLT dub was good. I personally would say better than Funi's dub, to be honest... Some small missteps exist(Some details about how they censored Roshi's antics are a little odd in terms of consistency with the other two dubs' portrayal of him after the first 13), but it's generally a pretty good dub, at least on-level with Funi's, so if you're more of an Ocean fan, this dub is probably a better option for you... And actually, BLT's dub of movie 1 is probably the best dub of that movie overall. Harmony Gold's did some things better, but the names may bother you too much, and not everyone has a copy of Harmony Gold's movie 1 dub, and Harmony Gold's version of movie 3, which ther #1 leads straight into, was a complete mess.

But yeah, BLT's dub is good. Would recommend. Really, even if the scripts had sucked, the performances, and its significance to Dragon Ball's history, would still make it worth at least one viewing, I think.
Super Sonic wrote:And speaking of little Chi-Chi, if you have brony friends, they'll be happy as she as well as Penny from "Curse of the Blood Rubies" is voiced by Andrea Libman who was 11 at the time of its airing.
From what I've heard, the bulk of the MLP cast come from the same Vancouver talent pool that the Ocean dubs of Dragon Ball pulled from, so if you're a Brony or have Brony friends, the Ocean dubs in general are a cool thing to take a look at from that perspective.
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Re: Was the BLT dub any good?

Post by Cure Dragon 255 » Mon Apr 09, 2018 8:21 pm

I'm quite happy that Ocean is getting more work in anime like the newer upcoming seasons of Yokai Watch!
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Re: Was the BLT dub any good?

Post by MasenkoHA » Mon Apr 09, 2018 8:36 pm

Super Sonic wrote:IWill also say Lalainia Lindbjerg made Bulma her own and sounds good as her.
I'm familiar with Lindbjerg's Bulma because of the Saban dub. About on par with Monica Rial for me both of which are vastly superior to Vollmer's Bulma

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Re: Was the BLT dub any good?

Post by Kakacarrottop » Tue Apr 10, 2018 1:37 am

In terms of acting, it's pretty much on the same level as the Saban dub, although it feels less inaccurate and is definitely less censored due to the absence of Saban. The only downside in this department is probably the absence of Brian Drummond, who didn't come on board until Z started. The replacement score sounds like a less gritty version of the Ron Wasserman soundtrack, since it also goes for a mystical vibe, but doesn't have any rock guitars or dark moments. Despite being on 24/7, it doesn't feel nearly as intrusive as say Bruce Faulconer or Mark Menza. Overall, I greatly prefer this dub over the horribly acted Blue Water dub, which you can actually compare it to since BW also dubbed the first 13 episodes. Funimation's in house dub is probably more accurate though, as is the Blue Water dub.
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Re: Was the BLT dub any good?

Post by Robo4900 » Tue Apr 10, 2018 10:25 am

Kakacarrottop wrote:The replacement score sounds like a less gritty version of the Ron Wasserman soundtrack, since it also goes for a mystical vibe, but doesn't have any rock guitars or dark moments
I think it has an entirely different sound, tbh. I highly doubt Wasserman would have put anything like this in his score.
Wasserman's score did have a lot of brighter-sounding moments when necessary, but the Berring score was a lot more floaty and carefree than the Wasserman score ever was.
Kakacarrottop wrote:Despite being on 24/7
Peter Berring's score for the BLT dub regularly has silent moments. In fact, this clip has more silence than music. This one too.
Kakacarrottop wrote:Overall, I greatly prefer this dub over the horribly acted Blue Water dub
The acting in BW's dub was fine.
Compared to the Ocean dubs, sure, it doesn't stand up well at all, but Funi's dub is just as bad, people are just so nostalgic for the voices of Nadolny and Vollmer, they don't notice how bad their acting was(There's a reason both were recast from Kai onwards...). Ultimately, neither is a particularly good dub, though, and both are quite a big step down from BLT's, so... Really it's a matter of picking your poison.

If you compare BW's to BLT's, yes, you'll find the acting is horrible, the scripts are bad, and the dub just doesn't stand up to it.
But, you'll find exactly the same in Funi's, so... Singling out the BW dub is just a little misleading.

Really, it's just a shame BLT didn't do more than just the first 13; they did the best job with those 13, and honestly, I'm still convinced that if they'd been given a good timeslot, BLT's Dragon Ball could've been one of the all-time classic shows everyone remembers from the mid-'90s, and it probably would have meant we'd have kept the Ocean cast for at least a little longer.
Kakacarrottop wrote:Funimation's in house dub is probably more accurate though, as is the Blue Water dub.
No, they aren't. Funi's in-house dub uses the same scripts, but with extra changes put in by Funimation on top. Parts that were cut from BLT's are included in Funi's, but the dialogue in those scenes is censored anyway(In Japanese: Bulma promised Roshi she'd let him poke her breasts, so she gets Oolong to do it. In BLT: Bulma promises Roshi she'd take a walk with him on his island. Nothing comes of this that we see. In Funi: Bulma promises Roshi she'd take a walk on his island's beach with him, so she asks Oolong to do it, so he turns into Bulma, then shows Roshi her breasts instead).
While BLT tended to cut scenes that went too far for TV, the dialogue was generally quite faithful, with changes only really creeping in for censorship reasons, though as noted by many, the censorship in BLT's dub was very mild. And unfortunately, Funimation's dub inherited almost all of the dialogue censorship, so all you really gain from Funi's dub is visual content that was cut.
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Re: Was the BLT dub any good?

Post by MrTennek » Sat Apr 14, 2018 11:40 pm

Uh, no, the blue water dub was absolutely, ear-splitting awful.

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Re: Was the BLT dub any good?

Post by MasenkoHA » Sun Apr 15, 2018 1:00 am

Robo4900 wrote:There's a reason both were recast from Kai onwards...). Ultimately, neither is a particularly good dub, though, and both are quite a big step down from BLT's, so... Really it's a matter of picking your poison.
Were they recast because of bad acting? It seemed like Funimation was intent on reprising as many of its voice actors as possible and was more of a availability thing than realizing they weren't very good. They even tried to keep Linda Young until they realized she couldn't keep up with the ADR.


Really, it's just a shame BLT didn't do more than just the first 13; they did the best job with those 13, and honestly, I'm still convinced that if they'd been given a good timeslot, BLT's Dragon Ball could've been one of the all-time classic shows everyone remembers from the mid-'90s, and it probably would have meant we'd have kept the Ocean cast for at least a little longer.
It would have been interesting especially if Scott Mcneil voiced evil King Piccolo with his unbelievably cool voice instead of Sabat just copying and pasting his Vegeta voice.


No, they aren't. Funi's in-house dub uses the same scripts, but with extra changes put in by Funimation on top. Parts] that were cut from BLT's are included in Funi's, but the dialogue in those scenes is censored anyway(In Japanese: Bulma promised Roshi she'd let him poke her breasts, so she gets Oolong to do it. In BLT: Bulma promises Roshi she'd take a walk with him on his island. Nothing comes of this that we see. In Funi: Bulma promises Roshi she'd take a walk on his island's beach with him, so she asks Oolong to do it, so he turns into Bulma, then shows Roshi her breasts instead).
While BLT tended to cut scenes that went too far for TV, the dialogue was generally quite faithful, with changes only really creeping in for censorship reasons, though as noted by many, the censorship in BLT's dub was very mild. And unfortunately, Funimation's dub inherited almost all of the dialogue censorship, so all you really gain from Funi's dub is visual content that was cut.
A lot of it is the same. Terry Klassen and Ian Corlett are even credited as writers for at least the first 13 in the funi dub. It's funny how the "uncut" Funi dub of Dragon Ball keeps a lot of censored dialog like Roshi just wanting a walk on the beach or Oolong just wanting to steal the Dragon Balls instead of molest Bulma (not that I don't approve of that change)

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Re: Was the BLT dub any good?

Post by Robo4900 » Mon Apr 16, 2018 4:46 am

MrTennek wrote:Uh, no, the blue water dub was absolutely, ear-splitting awful.
Yes, you are right, that is a true fact that is indesputable, and I am in awe of the immense research and effort required to express this 100% true fact that is in no way entirely your opinion at all. :roll:

After all, Toonami UK and YTV Canada exclusively aired "Ear-splittingly awful" content. It's not like anyone in the UK or Canada who watched cartoons in 2003 was capable of deciding not to watch the already not massively popular in the west series that's generally seen as a weird prequel if they didn't like it, or before that, the weird sequel that was aired before it which used the same dubbing team and that likely would have lead to its follow-up in airing not being aired, or at least having a vastly different approach taken if it wasn't deemed worthy of following up on. And obviously there's no chance that it was popular and well-liked enough to get its full 153-episode run, and its' predecessor in airing's full 64-episode run, in the UK and Canada on its own merits, because obviously, as you have said, it was "Ear-splittingly awful". Of course you must be right. :roll:

Apologies if I went too far with that one, but come on, man. What is this, YouTube?
MasenkoHA wrote:Were they recast because of bad acting? It seemed like Funimation was intent on reprising as many of its voice actors as possible and was more of a availability thing than realizing they weren't very good. They even tried to keep Linda Young until they realized she couldn't keep up with the ADR.
I've never heard anything definitive either way on that, though I seem to remember Chris Sabat hinting Vollmer, Nadolny, and Young were all not fitting well for the more accurate approach Kai was taking, and the higher quality of the voice acting overall, and that that's why they were recast.
MasenkoHA wrote:It would have been interesting especially if Scott Mcneil voiced evil King Piccolo with his unbelievably cool voice
Scott McNeil as Piccolo is always a win.

Actually, y'know what?...

Scott McNeil is always a win.
MasenkoHA wrote:A lot of it is the same. Terry Klassen and Ian Corlett are even credited as writers for at least the first 13 in the funi dub.
Pretty much all of it is the same. The bits that were changed from BLT's tend to make it even less accurate, or just reword it in ways that don't change its accuracy at all in any noticeable way, from what I've seen. There are exceptions, such as when the dialogue only works when seen alongside visual edits that weren't in the uncut dub. Though those aren't massively frequent.
MasenkoHA wrote:It's funny how the "uncut" Funi dub of Dragon Ball keeps a lot of censored dialog like Roshi just wanting a walk on the beach or Oolong just wanting to steal the Dragon Balls instead of molest Bulma (not that I don't approve of that change)
The job of an uncut English dub is to provide an English version of what the show was in Japanese. So, those pieces of censorship are pretty damning.
Though admittedly, I consider the Oolong one, in its original uncensored form, to be pretty uncomfortable to watch, and highly destructive to his character. Still, it's not up to a dub to fix flaws of the original show, and it's not like that scene was singled out for how uncomfortable it is and its effects on Oolong's character; it was chosen in 1995 among many other things as something to be censored to make it fit on American TV, and in 2001, Funimation didn't bother to change it for their uncut dub.
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Re: Was the BLT dub any good?

Post by MasenkoHA » Mon Apr 16, 2018 6:20 pm

Robo4900 wrote: The job of an uncut English dub is to provide an English version of what the show was in Japanese. So, those pieces of censorship are pretty damning.
Though admittedly, I consider the Oolong one, in its original uncensored form, to be pretty uncomfortable to watch, and highly destructive to his character. Still, it's not up to a dub to fix flaws of the original show, and it's not like that scene was singled out for how uncomfortable it is and its effects on Oolong's character; it was chosen in 1995 among many other things as something to be censored to make it fit on American TV, and in 2001, Funimation didn't bother to change it for their uncut dub.
And some of Funimation's lack of attention to detail rendered things non-sense.

They kept Oolong wishing for comfortable underwear and Bulma still calls him a pervert....um oops?

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Re: Was the BLT dub any good?

Post by ABED » Mon Apr 16, 2018 6:35 pm

I like it. The acting is good, but the edits are bothersome, though entertaining to see how they try to get around the more sexual material, like Goku removing Bulma's panties. It's worth it to watch it once.
and highly destructive to his character.
In what way? It's establishing his character as a dirtbag. It gives his character arc somewhere to go.
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Re: Was the BLT dub any good?

Post by Robo4900 » Mon Apr 16, 2018 7:11 pm

ABED wrote:In what way? It's establishing his character as a dirtbag. It gives his character arc somewhere to go.
It's one thing to establish someone as a dirtbag, it's another to establish them as an attempted rapist...
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Re: Was the BLT dub any good?

Post by ABED » Mon Apr 16, 2018 7:33 pm

I took it that he was going to fondle her, not rape her. Still disgusting and reprehensible, but this is a story where a genocidal bastard gets a redemption arc.
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Re: Was the BLT dub any good?

Post by Super Sonic » Mon Apr 16, 2018 8:43 pm

Yeah, that was the thing with the newer Funimation dub of the early eps was that they were lazy and just used the same old scripts. That was annoying.

On topic, the old dub was ok, but like many anime dubs of that time it may or may not have aged as well, so would be better if you turn your anime senses off.

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Re: Was the BLT dub any good?

Post by 8000 Saiyan » Wed Apr 18, 2018 1:30 pm

I liked it.
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Re: Was the BLT dub any good?

Post by G1Ravage » Wed Apr 18, 2018 9:26 pm

I think the BLT dub stands up pretty well. The voice acting is solid, and although the music is replaced, it's a pretty good score.

While there is some censorship, "death" was still allowed to be spoken, just as it was in the first four episodes of Ocean DBZ. See this clip as an example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ayBLvqK-l2E

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